Daughter to Father
by ZebbieCullen
Summary: Bella is worried about what Edward will think of her after her transformation and turns to Carlisle for help. Told from Carlisle's POV. One-shot. First in my Bella/Cullen bonding series. Revised.


_A/N: Many thanks to the genius that is Stephenie Meyer for the Twilight series and the Cullens. Carlisle is my favourite Cullen (after Edward of course), but Stephenie never really explains his relationship with Bella, so this is told from his POV. This is my first proper Twilight fic from anyone's POV, yet alone anyone but the main character, so I hope I'll do him justice. I've just corrected a few grammar errors. Enjoy, and I'd love to know what you think!_

I walked down the corridor slowly – well, slowly for me – smiling at the nurses I knew as I went. They all smiled back politely, then blushed and quickly looked away. Most would think that being blessed with extreme beauty would be a gift. However, I think of it more as a curse sometimes. It would be nice to have a conversation with one of the females I work with on a daily basis without them turning tomato red and – for lack of a better word – dithering when they talk.

I pushed away the curtain and smiled softly. Bella was sitting on the bed with a bandage pressed against her forehead, looking slightly pale. I was surprised to see that Edward wasn't with her; he usually never left her side.

"What happened?" I asked, moving her hand to examine the wound. She winced slightly. "Sorry."

There was a small gash near her left temple that looked quite deep. It was still bleeding, but with a head wound that was to be expected. The slightly metallic sent of human blood filled my senses, but it didn't bother me. It hadn't for decades. I knew that Edward still sometimes found it hard to control himself around her, and had been hunting more than usual lately. He'd never physically hurt her intentionally – he'd never _want_ to – but he was always scared to get too close, afraid that his instincts would take control of him. Personally, I have more faith in him and I can tell Bella does too. He has much more self-control than he gives himself credit for.

"I tripped," Bella mumbled, looking at the ground. She was breathing out of her mouth; she'd always hated the smell of blood. Emmett liked to tease her that she'd make a terrible vampire.

I involuntarily smiled, my perfectly white teeth gleaming. I don't know why I even ask half the time. "Where's Edward? And where did you trip?"

"Edward said he was going hunting with Emmett and Jasper for the day," she winced again as I cleaned the wound to prevent infection; I apologised again. For once she was lucky, it was unlikely to scar. "And I was in the woods. With Jacob."

I nodded, not saying anything. I didn't know the exact details of Bella and Jacob Black's relationship, but I knew that they had formed a strong friendship after Edward…decided to give her some space. I can't say that that was one of my son's better choices, but he had her best intentions at heart. I believe he honestly thinks that he's not good enough for her – that she deserves better. However, it doesn't take a genius – human or otherwise – to see how much she loves him and needs him. The way they are constantly in synch with each other, they way they affect each other – when one is sad, so is the other, when one is in pain, so is the other, when one is happy, they both are.

I also knew that Bella played a big part in keeping the treaty between the werewolves and my family. She cared for the pack and didn't want to see them get hurt, but if it came down to it, I knew she'd stay loyal to Edward and our family. I felt sorry for putting her in that position. I just hoped she'd never have to choose.

"Is he still here?" I asked as I applied a small gauze. I couldn't smell him near by.

"No, he wanted to stay, but I told him I'd be fine. I didn't think it would be a good idea if Edward suddenly showed up," she admitted, brushing some dark chestnut hair out of her soft chocolate eyes.

I nodded, silently agreeing. My son had quite the temper when he wanted to. It also wasn't a good idea for him to be around her whilst she was bleeding. Edward was good at resisting human blood, but Bella was different. She tempted him in a way that no one else could. Her blood sang to him, the way Esme's did to me before I had to change her to save her. I don't regret my decision, but I could see that Edward was already regretting _agreeing_ to transform her, yet alone actually doing it. I could see both sides of the argument. Bella wants nothing more than have an eternity with Edward, but he's worried about destroying her soul and condemning her. I truly believed that she will make a fine vampire, she has too much love and compassion to hurt anyone. We wouldn't let her. I'd offered to change her myself, but I can see she wants Edward to be the one to fill her bloodstream with his venom. With the right drugs, we could make her transformation as pain free and easy for her as possible. No one liked seeing her in pain. She didn't deserve it.

When James attacked her, Edward had to suck the venom from her blood. He had a hard time controlling himself. He could so easily have killed her, but he didn't, he had saved her. He was worried about not being able to stop once he bit her, but I promised him I wouldn't let anything happen to either of them.

Bella has brought so much to the family without even realising it. Edward has been so much happier since he'd met her. He smiled more and did something besides play the piano all day. His eyes were brighter; they had hope in them. Alice was still her perky, energetic self, and loved trying human things with Bella. Emmett saw her as his baby sister, and felt the need to protect her. He made jokes about her, but it's not hard to see that he cares. The boy wears his heart on his sleeve. Jasper prefers to keep his distance – for her own safety. He feels terribly guilty for what he almost did during her last birthday and is afraid that he'll try to attack her again. He hasn't been on a 'vegetarian' diet as long as they rest of us have, and to him all human blood smells the same, he isn't able to differentiate between scents. Rosalie? Well, I think she's angry with Bella for choosing to give up her life. Rosalie wants nothing more than to be able to have a family with Emmett, and I know she'd make a great mother, making sure her child never had to want. But alas, it can never happen. She give anything to be able to switch places with Bella and resents her for being able to give it all up so easily, but she'd keep Bella safe if only to make Edward happy. Esme's own maternal instincts shine through once again, she has loved Bella since the day she met her.

"All done," I announced, taking a step backwards. "Do you want some Tylenol?"

"I'm OK, I've had worse," we both smiled. "Thank you."

"It was my pleasure. Come and find me if you start experiencing any of the usual symptoms."

She gave a gentle nod and shifted in her seat. You didn't have to be a mind reader to know that something was on her mind, troubling her. "Is everything OK?" I asked, my tone no longer professional, it had taken on a fatherly pitch.

Her eyes were still on the ground. She had never liked confrontation or displays of emotion. I think she inherited it for her father. "Actually, I was wondering if I could talk to you about something?"

I gave her a swift nod. "Do you want to go somewhere more private? We could go to my office?" I suggested, thinking it was probably a good idea if the nurses didn't overhear our conversation.

I led her down the corridor and locked the door behind us. She sat down in a chair and I sat on the edge of my desk, my ankles crossed and my arms folded in a similar stand that my two oldest sons had taken to standing in recently.

"Is everything alright?" I asked tenderly.

"Of course. I'm just…worried, I guess," she replied, leaning back in the chair and rubbing her temple. I reached into my draw and handed her some Tylenol and a bottle of water. She took them, not bothering to fight me off.

"About what?"

She sighed, filling the room with her familiar scent. "I'm worried about my transformation. And what will happen to Edward and I afterwards," pain filled her voice. From my brief conversations with her father, Chief Swan, she hadn't done well being separated from him, and she had been almost intolerable to live with after we moved away as well. "I mean, what if he decides he doesn't love me anymore? After my blood stops singing to him?" she whispered the last part. She looked so scared, it broke my heart.

I noticed that she was hugging her chest, as if she was trying to hold everything together. She continued before I could reply. "What if that's the real reason he doesn't want to change me? What if he knows he'll feel differently about me after I'm…like you."

I shook my head, immediately dismissing the very thought, my blonde hair falling over my golden eyes. I brushed it away and looked at her big chocolate brown orbs. "That would never happen. He loves you for you, not for your blood. I think he'll feel relived that he won't want to kill you anymore," I smiled warmly in an attempt to reassure her. Throughout years of practice and medical experience I had perfected my bedside manner. "If anything he'll love you even more once your changed – although I'm not sure if that's possible. He hates being around you and not being able to express his love to you in a deeper way," she blushed faintly. "I think he'll be glad to finally be able to be around you and not have to worry about accidentally killing you. He'll never stop loving you, Bella," I said firmly, my eyes never leaving hers. I needed her to understand that.

"Are you feeling anxious?" I asked. "Not long to go now."

She shrugged. "A little. But I want this, more than anything. I want _him_ more than anything. I'm just scared I'll hurt someone once it's over. I saw what the new-borns were like and –"

I cut her off. "We won't let that happen to you. If we can get you onto animal blood right away, it may lessen the lust for human blood," I reassured her. We'd never let her do anything that she'd regret. "Bear in mind that you are the first person to choose this life willingly. We have no idea how that will affect things. Anything else you want to know?"

The corners of her mouth tugged upwards. "I was wondering…wondering what I'd look like after the change was complete. I mean, Rosalie, Esme and Alice and all breathtakingly beautiful, I was just wondering if I'd finally look like I fit in. Like I was worthy of Edward's love."

"You are worthier of his love than any other woman on the planet – human or vampire," I assured her. "But, to answer your question, your features will become sharper, your face slightly more angular, your hair will have a permanent glossy coat to it and your eyes will change colour, but we can get you coloured contact lenses if you don't like them red."

She smiled up at me, I could see believed my words; I spoke nothing but the truth. She hesitantly got up and hugged me. I felt her begin to relax as I wrapped my arms around her and returned the gesture.

I'm not sure what the future holds for us all, but I see Bella as my daughter; I love her as my own and always will.

_Fin_

_Hope you liked it. Let me know if you can think of any ways in which I can improve._

_Zebbie x_


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